Lightning upset top-seeded Wildcats to earn first state tournament berth since 2001

Stellar goaltending and a few good hops were the difference for Eastview, which upset Eagan 4-1 to win the Class 2A, Section 3 championship and earn the Lightning its first state tournament berth since 2001.

John Snodgrass scored the first and last goals for the Lightning, while sophomore goalie Zachary Driscoll gave up only one goal in the entire section playoffs. Eagan's third-period goal broke a string of 148 minutes, 32 seconds in which Driscoll wasn't scored upon this postseason.

"The big thing with him is that he practices like he plays," Eastview coach Drey Bradley said of Driscoll.

Two plays in the first period set the tone for the Lightning. At 6 minutes, 11 seconds, Snodgrass took a cross-ice floating pass and poked it off Eagan goalie Andrew Lindgren.

Shortly after the ensuing faceoff, Driscoll made a sprawling save as Mr. Hockey candidate Zach Glienke skated in all alone.

"I thought he was going to fall down," Bradley said of Snodgrass' first goal. "But he kept his feet, and it was a huge goal."

The next two goals for Eastview were as equally dazzling. Cole Cooper intercepted an errant pass in the offensive zone and skated in on an odd-man rush, ultimately opting to blast the puck past Lindgren himself for a 2-0 lead. The third Eastview goal, coming at 4:13 of the second period, came when Jake McGlocklin was waiting on the doorstep for a rebound off a Ryan McNamara slap shot from the point.

Snodgrass' second goal, coming at 10:06 of the third period, put the game away. An Eagan defenseman turned the puck over at center ice and Snodgrass skated in all alone, beating Lindgren to the backhand side for a 4-0 lead. Glienke would score at 12:32, breaking Driscoll's shutout streak, but it was too little, too late for the Wildcats.

"Yes, absolutely," Bradley said when asked if he considered this an upset. "I mean they're what, the No. 4 team in state? I just told the boys 'any given night' and that it would be very important to come out and score first. And we did just that."